Of course, we don’t know the whole story. The United States’ EPA monitoring stations were only partially functioning. Does this make you feel that the U.S. government is taking nuclear safety seriously?
James Pilant
Tag: fukushima
Japan nuclear crisis: Sarkozy calls for global rules (via BBC)
Absolutely, there should be international rules and they should be tough standards as well. A coal fired plant, wind energy, etc. have little change of crossing national borders but a nuclear disaster can travel across nation after nation.
(Another little factoid, advocates of nuclear power leave out. I, for one, believe that endangering lives and land in other nations is irresponsible behavior.)
James Pilant
From BBC –
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has called for clear international standards on nuclear safety in light of the ongoing crisis at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.
Speaking in Japan, he proposed that nuclear safety authorities from the G20 countries discuss the issue in May.
Radiation detected in the sea near the stricken plant has again risen steeply.
Meanwhile, the UN has advised Japan to consider expanding the evacuation zone around the reactors.
Mr Sarkozy is the first foreign leader to visit Japan following the earthquake and tsunami that hit the country on 11 March.
From further down in the article.
“The problem is more about establishing safety norms than it is about the choice of nuclear energy, for this there is no alternative right now,” Mr Sarkozy was quoted as saying by Reuters.
“We must address this anomaly that there are no international safety norms for nuclear matters. We want international standards because the world is a village and what happens in Japan can have consequences elsewhere.”
I’ve Hear of People Voting with their Feet but with Airline Tickets?
I could speculate that he nuclear crisis was causing this drop off in travel. But there is so much tragedy in Japan right now, there are multiple reasons not to go. Further, there is no way to sort out who isn’t going for what reason.
Nevertheless, this is firm evidence that the crisis continues.
James Pilant
American Airlines cuts flights to Japan as demand falls (from BBC)
American Airlines is reducing the number of flights to Japan as travel demand to the country continues to fall.
The airline said it would suspend two of its six daily flights to Japan from 6 April.
Other international airlines such as Delta and Qantas have also announced a reduction in capacity to Japan.
Travel demand has been falling due to fears of radiation leak after the 11 March earthquake and tsunami.
Fukushima Nuke Plant Now in Full Meltdown (via Red Pill Media Network)
This stuff is popping up all over the place. I’m going to put a number up but there is a definite change in the blogosphere from viewing the crisis as serious to viewing the crisis as an imminent catastrophe.
I recommend you watch these two videos.
James Pilant
Workers at Japan Nuke Plant ‘Lost the Race’ to Save Reactor, Expert Says – FoxNews.com (via To Your Health)
That would be a full meltdown.
It probably happened more than a week ago.
If it is, and it probably is, we are about to see an enormous amount of money spent to limit the damage.
James Pilant
via To Your Health
Viewpoint: We should stop running away from radiation (via BBC)
From BBC –
More than 10,000 people have died in the Japanese tsunami and the survivors are cold and hungry. But the media concentrate on nuclear radiation from which no-one has died – and is unlikely to.
Modern reactors are better designed than those at Fukushima – tomorrow’s may be better still
Nuclear radiation at very high levels is dangerous, but the scale of concern that it evokes is misplaced. Nuclear technology cures countless cancer patients every day – and a radiation dose given for radiotherapy in hospital is no different in principle to a similar dose received in the environment.
What of Three Mile Island? There were no known deaths there.
And Chernobyl? The latest UN report published on 28 February confirms the known death toll – 28 fatalities among emergency workers, plus 15 fatal cases of child thyroid cancer – which would have been avoided if iodine tablets had been taken (as they have now in Japan). And in each case the numbers are minute compared with the 3,800 at Bhopal in 1984, who died as a result of a leak of chemicals from the Union Carbide pesticide plant.
This is the hopeless nonsense I have to read day by day, hour by hour, trying to stay on top of the crisis.
It is utterly typical. Here you see a very, very careful parsing of the facts along with some cute phrasing – “Nuclear technology cures countless cancer patients every day – and a radiation dose given for radiotherapy in hospital is no different in principle to a similar dose received in the environment.” – meant to impress the yokels. The deaths in Chernobyl were artificially kept low by the Soviet Union. Deaths among the “liquidators” is now reported to be in the thousands.
Very carefully not mentioned are the 10,800 square miles of land no one can live on. That 10,800 square mile figure demonstrate simply and more eloquently than my poor skills the intellectual bankruptcy of this man’s ridiculous argument.
A portion of the surface of the earth cannot be safely lived on by mankind but since there are few reported deaths, it’s not that big a deal.
But let us cut through some more nonsense. The dangers of a situation cannot be intelligently measured by how many people have died so far. Six reactors came dangerously close and may yet meltdown destroying thousands of square miles that will be uninhabitable for generations.
The radiation levels in the area, measured in the thousands and in some places hundreds of thousands of times the recommended dose, are going to cause harm for generations.
This is also not that big a deal as far as our bold author is concerned.
Apparently, unless nuclear power takes the gloves off and whacks people left and right dropping them right here, right now, it’s not a big deal.
Well, I disagree.
James Pilant
Greenpeace Says Evacuation Area Near Fukushima Needs to be 20 km Wider (via flying cuttlefish picayune)
Here’s another reblog from our friend, “flying cuttlefish picayune.” (If anybody knows if when referring to a web blog and the title isn’t capitalized, if I should capitalize it, let me know.)
It’s nice to know that other bloggers are working the problem.
James Pilant
The view from Fukushima (via Bolsoversion)
The view from on the ground in Fukushima.
I will admit I don’t care much for the “fear mongering label.” Japan is likely hour to hour to experience a nuclear crisis more severe than what they have now. This is fact. An unfortunate fact but still a fact.
James Pilant
via Bolsoversion
Japan Nuke Plant Spins Out of Control (via flying cuttlefish picayune)
Well, no more than usual. There’s a crisis every day. However, this might me one of the twice weekly large ones. Don’t get me wrong. I expect every four hours or so, something to go badly wrong. I hope against but expect a meltdown at some point.
But I thought I’d throw in somebody else’s idea of how this is working out.
James Pilant
My thanks to “flying cuttlefish picayune.”
There Are Holes In U.S. Radiation Monitoring Stations
From Associated Press –
Parts of America’s radiation alert network have been out of order during Japan’s nuclear crisis, raising concerns among some lawmakers about whether the system could safeguard the country in a future disaster.
Federal officials say the system of sensors has helped them to validate the impact of nuclear fallout from the overheated Fukushima reactor, and in turn alert local governments and the public. They say no dangerous levels of radiation have reached U.S. shores.
In California, home to two seaside nuclear plants located close to earthquake fault lines, federal authorities said four of the 11 stationary monitors were offline for repairs or maintenance last week. The Environmental Protection Agency said the machines operate outdoors year-round and periodically need maintenance, but did not fix them until a few days after low levels of radiation began drifting toward the mainland U.S.
What do we measure it for anyway? So, the government can explain with a tiny bit more credibility that they have no idea what is happening in Japan but that there is no danger here? The governments both state and local are committed to nuclear power. It doesn’t matter how much radiation is in the air. It’s what is going to be done.
Not to mention the simple fact, that no matter what radiation is out there, we will be assured it is safe and that it couldn’t happen here anyway.
Do you get tired? Does this get old? The Japanese government lies. The Japanese utility company lies. Our government assures us everything is fine. The nuclear industry hires and persuades every half wit hack to write a pro nuclear piece assuring us that everything is just wonderful.
It’s not wonderful. Changes have to be made in the light of what has happened. You cannot dismiss this as an anomaly.
Nuclear power may be a part of America’s energy future, but this is about as far away from an intelligent discussion as can be imagined.
I cannot tell you how many articles I have had to troll through talking the company line. And to make it more thoroughly, wretchedly disgusting, pretending it is their original thinking and work.
When is there going to be a real national debate not based on corporate PR and a generous helping of campaign money? When is there going to be at least an attempt at deciding with reason and judgment what should be done about nuclear power?
James Pilant
Pilant's Business Ethics Blog 
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